Total Prostate Specific Antigen in Prostate Cancer Screening in Hyperglycemic Individuals.

AIM: In this study, it was aimed to investigate the reliability of total prostate-specific antigen (t-PSA) in prostate cancer screening in hyperglycemic (≥126 mg/dL) individuals. METHODS: This research was planned as a cross-sectional retrospective study. Three hundred eleven cases which underwent biopsy with the suspicion of prostate cancer in the hospital were included in the study. Prostate cancer risk groups were categorized as low, intermediate and high. Those with fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels lower than 126 mg/dL were considered as the normoglycemia group. RESULTS: It was determined that the t-PSA measurement was higher in the patient group with cancer (P < .001). It was determined that the median t-PSA levels of the intermediate and high cancer groups were higher than the low cancer group (P < .001 and P = .001, respectively). t-PSA was found to be associated with increased cancer risk in cases with FBG <126. However, an increase in t-PSA values in cases with FBG ≥126 was not associated with increased prostate cancer. There is no relationship between FBG measurement and t-PSA measurement (rs=0.05, P = .446). In addition, it was determined that the t-PSA measurements of patients with FBG ≥126 and FBG<126 did not differ (P = .962). CONCLUSIONS: As a contribution to literature, we found that the t-PSA test lost its sensitivity in cases with plasma glucose levels above normal. Loss of sensitivity may result in underdiagnosis in prostate cancer and this, in turn, results in diagnosis of the cancer at a later stage. In the future, it may be necessary to adopt a different approach in prostate cancer screening in hyperglycemic cases.

Influenza and pneumococcal vaccination and COVID-19 in kidney transplant patients.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to investigate the effect of recent influenza and pneumococcal vaccines' administration on the development of COVID-19 infection in kidney transplant recipients during the pandemic. METHODS: The effect of influenza and pneumococcal vaccines on the clinical course of the disease in COVID-positive (COVID group, n: 105) and COVID-negative (control group, n: 127) recipients has been examined. The control group included patients with negative rRT-PCR test results. At the time of the study, no patient was vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccine. The patients' influenza and/or pneumococcal vaccination rates in 2019 and 2020 were determined. In 2019 and 2020, 32 and 33 people in the COVID-positive group and 61 and 54 people in the COVID-negative group had received influenza and/or pneumococcal vaccines, respectively. The median study follow-up times of the COVID-negative and COVID-positive groups were 13.04 and 8.31 months, respectively. RESULTS: Compared with the COVID-negative group, the patients in the COVID-positive group were younger and had a longer post-transplant time. In addition, the rate of transplantation from a living donor and the rate of COVID positivity in family members were also higher. The influenza vaccination rates in the COVID negative group were significantly higher than the COVID-positive group in 2020 (23.8% vs 37%, p = 0.031). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the presence of COVID-19 in family members and lack of pneumococcal vaccination in 2020 increased the risk of being positive for COVID-19. There was no significant difference in the hospitalization rates, the need for dialysis and intensive care, the hospital stay, and the graft dysfunction in the COVID-positive patients with and without influenza and pneumococcal vaccines. CONCLUSION: The observations made throughout this study suggest that influenza and pneumococcal vaccination in transplant patients may reduce the risk of COVID-19 disease and provide additional benefits during the pandemic period.

Vitamin D and thiol-disulfide homeostasis levels in postmenopausal women with overactive bladder syndrome.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to find a relationship between vitamin D concentration and thiol-disulfide homeostasis in the pathophysiology of overactive bladder (OAB) syndrome in postmenopausal women. METHODS: A total of 76 postmenopausal women, referred for routine controls, were recruited between January and March 2018 to participate in this study. Participants with an overactive bladder questionnaire (OAB-q) score of >11 (n = 34) were included in the OAB syndrome group, while those with a score of <5 (n = 42) were included in the control group. Serum total antioxidant capacity, ischemia-modified albumin, C-reactive protein, 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels, and thiol-disulfide homeostasis were measured. RESULTS: Patients with OAB syndrome had waist circumferences of 106 ± 11 cm, and their body mass indexes (BMIs) were 30.8 ± 4.8 kg/m2. The control groups' waist circumferences were 102 ± 11 cm and their BMIs were 28.9 ± 4.3 kg/m2 (p = 0.069 and p = 0.098, respectively). The level of vitamin D in the control group was 33.7 (IQR: 30.7) nmol/L and 27.0 (IQR: 27.5) nmol/L (p = 0.081) in the OAB syndrome group. CONCLUSIONS: We were not able to demonstrate with certainty any significant relationships between serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels and thiol-disulfide homeostasis parameters and OAB syndrome.